Failure as a Chance to Attain Customer Loyalty

Failure at some point is something that is inevitable in life, and it is how an individual reacts that determines his or her growth and development from the experience. In the modern working environment comprised of a multicultural taskforce, it is paramount that the leadership is competent in addressing the failure of the employees. Implementing the necessary steps of conflict resolution while adhering to informal leadership roles can yield loyalty from both the customers and subordinates. Hence, the article addresses the misconception regarding failure in the workplace, and illustrates how leaders may approach failure, and use it to improve their organization.
Before making any further analysis on the topic, one must consider the intrinsic meanings of the main elements involved such as failure, and leadership roles.

A survey was carried out to assess common mistakes that are made by businesses and they include:

Failure to rectify an issue efficiently:

It is no secret that every company will face an issue at some point during a working day, and frustration among the clients has been found to increase with a delay in the resolution of the situation. For example, I once shopped online and the product I received was damaged.

The company requested me to return the goods, before they would ship me a replacement; I had to wait three weeks for the issue to be resolved. I still remember this encounter four years later.

In essence, the main problem was the poor resolution of the error, and not the actual damaged goods. If the company had been efficient in rectifying the problem, it may have improved our relations, and I would not remember the negative events. Companies can use the problems they face to improve relationships with their clients, and give them confidence that even in negative circumstances, they will always find a solution.

Failure to communicate with customer

In modern times, technology allows the company to interact with the client regularly, through phone calls and notifications via email. Hence, in cases of some unexpected events, the organization should improve the communication channels and ensure that the client is up to date with any changes, and interventions that will be made by the company. In the modern business environment, companies usually send three or more emails to clients notifying them of the status of their goods. Additionally, services that are not provided online are always accompanied with a consultant to help the client.

Therefore, establishments that do not have effective communication with the clients are lagging behind. The leadership should use the staff, and interaction with the client as a way of solidifying the relationship. Failure opens up gates for communication, and expression between the establishment and the client that would not have been present under different circumstances. It is predictable that the client will be emotional; however, this is an opportunity to present a side of the company that is patient and professional putting the needs of the customer first.

As previously mentioned, leadership roles are important when it comes to failure in an organization, as individuals in these positions are responsible for the resolving the issue.

There are two types of roles and these include formal and informal. The later include: empathy, compassion, support and motivation. The former consists of supervision, decision-making, and conflict resolution. Adequately fulfilling these duties will allow one to effectively deal with any situations of failure.

In case of failure, there are multiple parties that are involved, and neglecting one entity is bad for the present and future of businesses. Hence, leaders should ensure that they appropriately address the clients and the workforce. A case study that was carried out by Marigold, showed that many workers that make mistakes are new or have a minimal amount of experience. Hence, the leadership should be empathetic, which was found to have a positive impact on the attitude of approximately eighty percent of the workers in the above study. It is also important to acknowledge that support from the leaders provides motivation for the staff. Therefore, these individuals should adopt motivational techniques even in cases when failure has been directly caused by an individual.

Finally, there is also a need for leaders to be competent in their formal roles, as this will help in both prevention, and resolution of failure. Studies show that efficient supervision of staff helps avoid the majority of errors, as in eighty percent of the cases; these occur due to lack of knowledge or reference.

In short, failure is not a death sentence for a company or an employee; rather, a way of establishing a better workplace relationship, and building customer loyalty. The leadership should be competent in dealing with different situations that are faced by the client. This includes being available for communication with customers, and making maximal effort to resolve any problem as soon as possible.